Doorlatch



, 1935 0. cfscHMm'r 2,016,519

DOORLATC H Filed Oct. 7, 1933 4 Sheets-Sheet l v 13 2. I m/vs/vroe:

Oct. 8, 1935. sc m 2,016,519

DOORLATCH Filed Oct. 7, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 a v //07 I /76 IE- O /06I38 /78A Oct: 8,' 1935. o. c. SCHMIDT DOORLATCH Filed Oct. 7, "1935 4Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOP.

o. c. SCHMIDT 2,616,519

DOORLATCH Filed Oct; 7, 1935 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 //v l/ENTGP:

Patented Oct. '8, 1935 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE] DOORLATCH Oscar C.Schmidt, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The Cincinnati Butchers SupplyCompany,- Cincinnati, Ohio, a-corporation 01. Ohio Application October7, 1933, Serial No. 692,688 rciaim. (01. 292-78) large refrigeratordoors used in butchershops, latch lever in closed relation in fulllines, and in packing plants and the like. open relation in dottedlines. o

It is the object of my invention to provide a Fig. 11 is a frontelevation of a further modisimple door latch which is operated by themovefication of my invention, partly broken away, and I ment of the doorin opening and in closing the showing the latch mountedJon the door.

door; further, to provide novel latching means Fig. 12 is a plan view ofthe same, with the My invention relates to door latches, especially tolatches for doors whichit is desired to open and close frequently. Myinvention is also designed for use with heavy doors, for instance,

whereby the latching lever is tripped by the closing movement of thedoor for exerting closing force upon the door; further, for providingopen ing force upon the door when opening the door;

Fig. 10 is a longitudinal section of the same v taken on the line Iii-I0of Fig. 8, showing the door and wall in section on the line l2--l2 ofFig. 11, and partly broken away.

Fig. 13 is a side elevation 01" a still further modification of myimproved device, showing the further, to provide novel latching meanswherelatching means located at the inside of the door. by the latchinglever may be placed on the wall Fig. 14 is a planzview of the same, withthe 0f the door opening or on the door; further, to d or and wall insection on the line |l-ll of provide novelmeans for operating thelatching Fig. 13, and partly broken y;

lever; and, further, to provide novel means in Fig. 15 is a longitudinalsection' of the same, connection therewith for initially I urging thetaken on the line l5l5 of Fig. 13, and showing 20 door in openingdirection. the latch in latched relation in full lines, and in Myinvention'consists in novel means for acunlatched relation in dottedlines. complishing the objects stated, and in the novel The body I ofthe refrigerator has a door openparts and the novel arrangements andcombinai g a d o be Closed y a (1001 3 mounted tions of partshereinafter more fully described on hinges A Sealing C n 5 is located 25and claimed. tween a flange 6. which surrounds the door and Theinvention will be further readily underthe outer margin of the dooropening, and'a sealstood from the following description and claims, ingcushion l is located between the inner margin and from the drawings, inwhich latter: of the door and a sealing strip 8 secured to the Fig. 1 isa front elevation of my improved dedoor jamb 9 at the inner end of thedoor opening. vice, with the door and'wall of a refrigerator The sealingcushio and Sealing S ip e tend partly broken away. around the dooropening.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same, the door and A latch lever II ispivoted on a pivot pin l2, wall being shown in section on the line 2-2of mounted in bearings l3 in side flanges I extend- Fig. 1 and partlybroken away. ing from abase l5 which forms a casing It, the

Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical section of the side flanges having a slotll therebetween in latch, taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, and showwhichthe latch'lever moves. The casing has a ing the parts in latchedrelation in full lines, and av y Shown formed y he Side flanges I4,

' in unlatched relation in dotted lines. a cross wall I9 and an end wall20, forming an Fig, 4 is a cross-section of the same, taken in n l s n wll f th as n T as is p v the plane of the irregular line 4 4 i 3', withfasteningflanges 2|, suitable screws 22 se- Fig. 5 is a cross-sectionaldetail view taken on curing the casinginplacethe line of 1, The latchlever is provided with opposed contact a 6 is a a 22212::thanmeanest:3.-

322 2 2:5 3 :3 device for use with an extm other at the respective sidesof the pivot 01' the Fi 7 ho iz 1 t1 fth latch lever and coact with akeeper 3|. 7 L 1S r n cross sec on o 8 Same The keeper is shown as a pinlocated in a beara e??? a}? 3 -7 g; lpi i y yfing 32 ofja plate-"33secured in place by screws WW 34. Asetscrewti' threadedinthe-bearingsclamps tr. view of the sa e, with the Fig-1a is "a f'rontivation ham a: farmer.

Zpinmaybe' provided-wit The e ter-le ixt he .l 'e 2 35=Fl h enactsit'lijtheeontact faces A handle. from he .plate'33 forrnovemento 'thdoor.

The casing in Figs. I to wtncmsiv shown end of the rod is received in a.recess 47 in the end wall 20 of the casing. The inner end of the rod hasan enlarged threaded portion 48, over which a nut 49 is threaded.

A helical spring is located about the rod between said nut and the wall52 of the recess 41. The spring is centered about the rod by ,the

enlarged threaded portion at one end thereof, and an enlargement 53 ofsaid rod at the other end thereof. The outer end of the rod ismaintained in said recess for locating said outer end laterally, theouter end of the rod being, however, normally distanced from the bottomof the recess for permitting endwise movement of said rod. Swivel orpivot connection 5c between the outer end of the rod and the end wall ofthe casing is 7 thus formed.

When the axis of the pivot 43 is located coincident with a right linebetween the axis of the pivot 52 and the pivotal axis at the outer endof the rod, which right line is represented by the clot and dash line54, then the latch lever is in dead center position. If the axis of thepivot 43 is moved to either side of said right line, then the spring androd connection with the tail of the latch lever urge swinging movementof the latch lever to extreme extent, for coaction of either contactface 26, 21 with the keeper, depending on which side of said right linethe axis of the pivot 43 is located, for either urging closing movementof the door when the keeper and the contact face 26 are in coaction, oropening movement of the door when the keeper and the contact face 21 arein coaction.

Movement of the latch lever in each direction is limited to place thecontact faces in proper positions. the lever is arranged to strike thebase at the lug 55 when the latch lever moves in one direction, and theinner corner 56 of the tail of the lever is arranged to strike the basewhen thelatch lever is moved in the opposite direction. The latch leveris provided with a projection 57 having a rounded edge to continuouslyclose the outer end of the slot Il during various positions of the latchlever.

When the door is in closed relation, the inner wing is distanced fromthe base by a space 56, so that. there is continuous urge of the contactface 26 against the keeper for urging the door into closed relation withcontinuous pressure so as to thoroughly seal the door. I,

The pin 3| is preferably polygonal in cross-section, and the bearing 32therefor is of similar cross-sectional form, and the roller 36 ispreferably eccentrically placed with relation to the axis of the pin, ason an eccentric shank 6| of the pin. This permits the pin to be placedin various positions rotatively in the bearings for adjusting theposition of the contact roller, and therefore adjusts the closedrelation of the door. Placing the eccentric roller at differentpositions about the axis of the pin places the contact roller atdifferent distances from the planes in which the sealing faces of. thedoor are located, and in difierent positions with relation to thecontact faces Thus the inner one of the wings of on the latch lever, forobtaining different closing efiects upon the door.

It will be noted from the full-line position of the latch lever in Fig.3, that when the door is in closed relation, the contact face 26 extendsup- 5 wardly and slantingly outward, with the tail of the latch leverand the rod and spring thereabout tipped outwardly from the right linebetween the pivot l2 and the pivot 50 at the bottom of the rod 42, thespring exerting inward pressure upon the door, with the inner wing ofthe latch lever spaced from the base by the space 58. In this relationthe contact face 21 and the wing 29 on which it is located, extendsubstantially horizontally inward and below the path or plane in whichthe keeper 31 moves when the door is swung.

If now the door be swung to open the door, by pulling upon the handle38, or pushing upon the door from the inside of the refrigerator, thekeeper 3| will move outwardly in a horizontal plane acting in saidhorizontal plane against the contact face 26, for swinging the latchlever on its pivot in the opposite direction, causing shifting of thepivot 43 and moving it past the right line 54, whereupon the spring androd connection with the tail of said lever causes swinging of the latchlever for moving the contact face 21 into contact with the keeper,represented by the dotted position of the latch lever in Fig. 3, inwhich relation outward urge of the contact face 21 is caused upon thekeeper for urging the keeper and the door outwardly and aiding in theopening movement of the door.

This movement continues until the stop 58 on the keeper strikes the rearwall of the casing, or the front edge 62 of the latch lever strikes thefront end wall 63 of the slot 81, or both these striking movements takeplace, in which position the contact face 26 and the wing 28 of thelatch lever will have moved out of range of the path of the keeper to aposition below the level or path of movement of the keeper, so that thedoor and keeper may be swung outwardly, and placing the lever in suchposition that when the door is swung into closing relation, the keeperwill strike the contact face 21 of the latch lever.

The impact of the keeper upon said latch lever or the moving of the doorinto closing relation causes tilting of the latch lever so as to againreversely move its pivot 33 to the other side of the right line 54,whereupon the spring and rod connection with the latch lever will causeswinging of the latch lever for closing relation of the door andmovement of the contact face 26 against the keeper 3|, with the springurging closing movement of the door.

The door may be opened or closed by merely pulling or pushing on thedoor from either the inside or from the outside of the door,manipulation of other latching means being unnecessary.

The latch lever is provided with a hole 59 in which the bow of a padlockmay be placed for locking the latch lever in closed position, the bowbeing obstructed by the proximate walls of the casing for preventingpivotal movement of the latch lever. I

. The inside face 01' the door may be provided with a handle 64 on aplate 65 secured to the door.

It will be noted that the contact faces 26, 21 have a shallow hollow 66therebetween. The 70 middle portionof this hollow is in the plane of theright line 54 when the latch lever is in dead center position. Theopposed wings and the contact faces 26, 21 thereon extend in oppositedirections with relation to. each other at the oppo- 7 site sides. ofthis hollow, so that little movement of either wing or contact faceineither direction about the axis of the latch lever is required forpermitting traversing movement between the keeper and either of saidcontact faces with little vertical distance between them while the latchleveris in either of its extreme positions, with the other of saidcontact faces and wings urged against the keeper by the spring forurging either opening movement or closing movement of the door.

The contact faces 26, 21 extend at substantially obtuse angles withrelation to each other at the respective sides of the hollow at thecontact end of said latch lever, and when said latch lever is in deadcenter position the dead center line 58 practically forms a bisector ofsaid obtuse angle,

with the biseetor substantially coincident with a right line in whichthe pivots I2, 48 and 88 are located when the latch lever is in. deadcenter position.

Figs. 6 and 'l exemplify a modification of my" invention for useespecially with large doors or warped doors for insuring closurethroughout the margin of the door." In these figures similar. parts aredesignated by similar reference numer als raised to the series I88. Thehandles on the keeper supports may be dispensed with in thisexemplification, and a keeper I may be mounted in a bearing I32 ofakeeper plate I88 secured at each of the swinging corners of the door. A

"latch structure is mounted-on the door frame or jamb at each ofcorresponding corners of the door.

A handle I88 is mounted on the middle portion of the door, and is shownas part of a lever I88 mounted on a pivot I88 of an escutcheon plate I18in the handle lever and a pin, I88 on the rod received in the slot.

An operator at the outside of the door may open the door by manipulationof the handle I88, and an operator at the inside of the door may openthe door by operation of the handle I18. The door may be closed oropened by pulling or pushing respectively upon either handle from theoutside or inside of the door.

The latches at the respective corners of the door operate simultaneouslyautomatically by the pushing and pulling movements upon the door inmanner similar to the operation of the single latch described inconnection with Figs. 1 to 5 inclusive. Separate adJustment of thekeepers aid in compensating for different pressures or extents ofmovements upon the respective corners of the said threaded enlargement,a helical spring about said rod' between said nut and a stationary part65 door in case the door should be warped or its closing be uneven atdifferent parts of the door. Latches and keepers may be placed on'different parts of the door according to the requirements a for closingthe door throughout its margin.

Referring to Figs. 8, 9 and 10, similar parts are designatedby similarreference numerals raised to the series 200. In this modification thelatch lever is provided with a handle 888 which extends from the latchlever through the slot Ill and alongside oi the front of the casing 2 I8but spaced therefrom by a space 288, permitting room by which the handlemay be grasped by the hand of the operator for swinging the latch leverby outward swinging of the handle for more intimate sealing of the door,or for initially opening 6 the door by swinging the handle inwardly.

This modification is especially useful where extra heavy doors areemployed or where doorsfit tightly or with a tendency to bind in thedoor tive to insure intimate closing of the door and ready initialopening movement of the door.

I have in Figs. 11 and 12 shown an additional modification in which thelatch lever is mounted on the door and the keeper on the jamb. In these,15

figures similar parts are designated by similar reference numeralsraised to the series 300. The latch lever and its mounting are similarto that shown in Figs. 8, 9 and 10. The latch. casing is mountedhorizontally on the door, and the keeper is mounted vertically on thejamb, the axis of the keeper being substantially parallel to the pivotalaxes of the hinges' of the door. 7

The pin 88I is mounted in a bearing 882 on a bracket 889 extending fromthe plate 888, secured 25 to the jamb by screws 884. I

I have in Figs. 13, 14 and 15 exemplified the keeper and latch lever atthe inside of the door, the keeper being mounted on the door jamb andthe latch lever and its casing on the door. Similar parts in thesefigures are designated by similar numerals raised to the series 400. Inthis. instance, the keeper 88I is rotatably adjustable in a bearing 882on a plate 488 secured to the sealing strip 888 and to the jamb in arecesslsfl.

An outer handle 481 is provided on an escutch'eon plate 488, secured tothe outer face of the door, to be grasped by the operator at the outsideof the door for opening or for closing the door.

The latch operates automatically in response to theopening or closingmovement for latchingor unlatching the door.

The inner face of the door may be provided with a handle in each of theexempliflcations-shown and described for pulling the door into closing45 position. V

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as-new and desireto secure by Letters Patent is:

In a latch, the combination of a casing, a lever having a pivot in saidcasing and having a latching end at one side of said pivot, a rod whoseone end hasarticulating connection with said lever at I the oppositeside of said pivot and whose other end has articulating connection withsaid casing,

of said casing with the respective ends of said helical spring. aboutsaid enlargements for centering both ends of said spring about said rodand said parts being so related that adjustment of said nut on saidthreaded enlargement adjusts the tension of said spring, and saidsecond-named enlargement movable axially in said spring upon pivotalmovement of said lever.

- OSCAR SCHIIIDT.

Jamb, the handle on' the latch lever being effec- 1o

